Is there another turncoat on deck for the Philadelphia Mafia. All indications are that Louis “Bent Finger Lou” Monacello has cut a deal with the fed’s and has begun cooperating. Monacello was a close associate of mobster George Borgesi who is now in jail along with reputed Philly mob boss Joseph “Uncle Joe” Ligambi and other high ranking mobsters from with in the crime family. Borgesi was supposed to be awaiting his release ending a 14 year conviction from 2001 until the recent indictments and feds claim Monacello ran sports betting and loan sharking operations in Delaware County for the jailed mobster during that prison term and was his go to guy on the streets.

Some describe Monacello as a self described wise guy who enjoyed playing the role of a gangster and is now playing another role familiar to the Philly underworld government witness. Those in Borgesi’s defense team and unidentified mob sources claim Monacello was nothing more then a poseur and nothing more then a street hustler and con man fascinated by organized crime and used Borgesi’s name on the streets to line his own pockets. One source said that Monacello ran his own show on the streets and lied to everybody overplaying his mob connections as protection for a loan sharking business he ran funded from money he made from mortgages on properties he owned. A former associate said that Monacello made a lot of money loan sharking and used to brag about his connections to Borgesi going as far as holding out his lapel and say when George comes home he was going to get his button , or get “made” which is mob talk for being formally initiated into the Mafia.

There has yet to be any official confirmation that Monacello has turned rat and is cooperating but all indications point to the fact that he has cut a deal and will likely not be at the defense table when the case goes to trial next year. Sources confirm that several documents which include a plea memo in Monacello case file are now under seal. And prosecutors who originally opposed bail decided last month not to object to his release. Then early one morning last month Monacello was allowed to remove belonging from his townhouse which is around the corner from Ligambi’s in the Packers Park section of South Philadelphia and is now living somewhere in New Jersey under a form of limited house arrest according to several sources.

If Monacello has indeed cut a deal and agreed to cooperate he would be in a position to enhance the case against Ligambi and clarify the charges against Borgesi say investigators. One video reported by Fox29 shows Monacello having a meeting with a animated and possibly angry Ligambi lecturing him outside his home last year. So far no one has been able to provide any audio of that meeting but if Monasello testifies he could put words to the pictures of that video. Monacello’s decision to cooperate could also help to bolster evidence already being provided by Frank “Frankie the Fixer” DiGiacomo who worked for Monacello doing collections and extortion while he was a cooperating witness for the feds and was wearing a wire. DiGiacomo was able to provide many tapes a couple of which were conversations with Ligambi where they discussed loan sharking according to the indictment.

Monacello was expected to be facing a sentence of up to 5 years in the pending federal case and his choice to cooperate could result in him facing substantially less time. Both Monacello and DiGiacomo are expected to face some heavy cross examination on their reputations and credibility with DiGiacomo already being known as a con man and degenerate gambler on the streets which will all be fair game for the defense teams. Some of the verbal attacks have already begun to fly as a source for the defense camp was quoted as sayings Monacello uses everybody and now he is just using Borgesi again for a get out of jail free card.

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